X-Rite Color Blog

It’s important to ensure design intent is realized each time and everywhere a product appears. But with so many variables to impact print quality, how can brands utilize suppliers around the world and still achieve consistent color? Our X-Rite Pantone Packaging Color Experts have designed a series of consulting services and workshops to help you get the most from your print, packaging, plastic or textile value chain.   Offered both online and onsite, these interactive sessions i...

No matter the industry, our customers are all working toward the same goal: Achieve accurate color and keep production moving. Even in the best conditions, color data can be a challenge to capture and share. COVID-19-related travel bans and social distancing guidelines are making it harder than ever.    Today we’ll share three easy ways to remotely share color data so you can achieve your color goals without shipping physical samples or making onsite visits. The Benefits of Digit...

Our customers who are now working remotely need to be aware that changing a small variable – such as approving color from home under a different light source, or emailing specifications instead of sending a physical sample – can introduce color issues that risk creating a larger color problem. The first and most critical stage to color control is accurate color communication. These resources will help you get started. The Importance of Color Communication Blog | Many color...

Spectrophotometers (“spectros” for short) are color measurement devices used to capture and evaluate color. As part of a color control program, brand owners and designers use them to specify and communicate color, and manufacturers use them to monitor color accuracy throughout production. Spectrophotometers can measure just about anything, including liquids, plastics, paper, metal and fabrics, and help ensure that color remains consistent from conception to delivery.   &nb...

Phone and computer screens are the window into the digital world of color, but if you are approving colors via email or text you need to be aware of the limitations.  For starters, each of your devices relies on a different color model to display color. Input devices – your camera and monitor – use the additive color model to display color. They start with darkness and add red, green, and blue light to create a spectrum of colors. Printers, on the other hand, use the s...

Does your quality control program include visual evaluation? Lighting plays a huge role in how we perceive color. It can help you verify whether the color of your product is acceptable and ensure it remains accurate in every possible lighting condition after purchase.     Many of our customers are finding visual evaluation to be even more important as they transition color reviews and approvals to a different location, such as in the home office or to another remote environmen...

So much goes into the way you perceive color, including light, genetics, the environment, human traits, and even fatigue. You may also be among the 1 in 255 women and 1 in 12 men who have some form of color vision deficiency. Our online color challenge is a fun way to better understand your color vision acuity.     Regardless of your color vision acuity, if you are communicating, evaluating, or approving color from a new location your eyes may trick you into making diff...

Color has always been a critical factor for our customers. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, many are now trying to design, specify, communicate and ultimately achieve accurate color from remote locations or with less staff and fewer resources. Are you having trouble maintaining your color program in this unprecedented time?  We've compiled our most popular resources – blogs, videos, whitepapers, webinars, and case studies – to help you connect with your supply chain and ...

G7™ is a proof-to-print process control method that allows you to reliably and efficiently match the visual appearance of the output from multiple printing devices. It works by defining the gray balance and NPDC curves in conjunction with the traditional method of measuring tonal value increase (TVI/dot gain) for each color. G7 can be applied to any type of printing, regardless of the type of ink or printing method, including all types of digital, offset, flexo, gravure printing.   It...

Durable goods and consumer electronics are no longer destined to be white, gray, and black. In fact, consumers are moving towards more classic colors and special effect finishes like metallics. To capitalize on this trend, brands need to bring innovative designs in new colors faster to market than ever before.   One trending color, the PANTONE Color of the Year 2020, is sure to capture the attention of durable good and consumer electronic brands. It is a simple, timeless, elegant, and endur...